It’s safer to discard leftovers than rewarm it – Expert

A consultant epidemiologist at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Kwara State, Prof. Kayode Osagbemi, tells ARUKAINO UMUKORO about the effects of food poisoning

What is food poisoning?

Food poisoning is when unwanted or foreign materials that can endanger our health get into our food or water, which leads to food poisoning. Food poisoning can be due to microorganism like bacteria, fungi, viruses within foods. It may also be due to chemicals that are released by those organisms.

How does it occur?

Food contamination and poisoning can occur from production; from the farm, during transportation of the food products, when the food is being processed or when the food is on the table. Contamination can also occur during the processing, storage and preservation of food. In the farm, the chemicals that are released into the ground, through activities on the farm can also lead to contamination. In such scenario, some people do not wash their hands and this could lead to food contamination and, thus, food poisoning.

Also, sometimes, when people host parties and food is prepared in large quantities, food poisoning can also occur as a result of poor preparation and everybody that eats the particular food get affected. In other cases, food poisoning occur as a result of criminal acts, when someone deliberately poisons food or drink with dangerous substances, drugs or chemical to cause harm to another person or group of persons.

What causes food poisoning in some parties, restaurants or homes where strict hygiene is observed?

Food poisoning can occur even in the best restaurants. The reason being that, one, the food itself is a good culture media for microorganisms to grow, particularly when the food is left over for some time. Even in the so-called well organised restaurant system, they normally advise that food is best consumed as soon as it is purchased from them, because if the food is kept for a long time, it can deteriorate in quality, and could cause food poisoning. Also, some of the people who work in such eatery do not observe adequate personal hygiene, and could contaminate the food they sell themselves. While at home, some people may want to rewarm leftovers. This could lead to food poisoning too. That’s why it is usually advised that people should reboil or cook the food again, rather than rewarm, because of the growth of micro organisms.

What are some of the symptoms of food poisoning?

They are diarrhoea, vomiting, fever, dizziness, signs of abdominal pain, blood and so on. Usually, cases are known within 24-48 hours of food consumption. When anybody notices these symptoms, the person should report immediately to get proper treatment at the hospital.

However, food poisoning due to chemicals, such as heavy metals, is very difficult to treat because they may affect some other organs in the body, apart from the digestive system. Generally, people should not be sceptical about seeking for medical help in cases of food poisoning. It is best treated when the cases are reported early.

When food poisoning occurs among a group of people showing the same symptoms, it could be traceable to their food intake or water supply. Food poisoning is sometimes common during festivities, when people take what they normally don’t consume.

There was a recent case of food poisoning in a popular Lagos secondary school…

Yes, I read about it. This could have been a result of their food or water. The good thing is that food poisoning can be treated. It is only when people are negligent or do not go for treatment that there are problems. Of course, there are some very deadly food poisoning cases like clostridium and so on, that can degenerate rapidly. But these are not common.

What are the precautions food handlers or vendors should take when cooking food for large gatherings, especially in public schools, restaurants or during parties to prevent food poisoning?

One of the most effective and practical ways to prevent food poisoning is hand washing, either when one is preparing or eating the food.

Also, people who prepare food for a large group or in restaurants and other places should undergo general physical and medical examination in a hospital, where their stool, urine and, in rare occasions, their blood samples, are taken and tested to ensure they are not carriers of any infection that could lead to food poisoning. This procedure does not mean they would not be allowed to work as caterers or food vendors. But it is to ensure they get the right treatment. A medical certificate is then issued to them. In restaurants, the workers or staff should be the ones that undergo these tests. But we find out that, most times, it is the owners of these restaurants that come to the hospital for the test and they collect the medical certificate and place it in their restaurants; whereas they are not the ones actually handling the food that could be contaminated in the process. There should be proper quality control at every point of food processing and preparation to prevent contamination. In public places, there should be proper monitoring of food products and water by the superior catering supervisors/officers to ensure that there is proper personal and group domestic hygiene in food preparation so that the consumers would not be at risk. The tests are not too expensive. In the long run, the cost of prevention is far lesser than the cost of cure for food poisoning, especially when it involves a crowd.

How can food poisoning be prevented in the home?

It also involves personal and domestic hygiene, again, the proper washing of hands and proper storage of food, either by refrigeration or drying. We should protect food from rodents like rats, which could contaminate them with their urine or stools.

What would you advise people who tend to re-warm food showing signs of spoilage by using onions?

That is actually self-poisoning. It is better to discard such food than to start rewarming it. In the case of leftovers, because of economic realities, some family would not want to throw them away, but it is better to re-cook leftovers rather than just rewarming it.

What are the wrong ways of food storage that lead to food poisoning?

An instance is keeping food in the open. For example, when raw garri is dried in the open, some people just take it from there and soak it in water for consumption, despite the fact that it could have been contaminated in the open. It is advisable to store raw or cooked food with proper covering. People should buy food, especially perishable foodstuff and fruits, they can reasonably consume over a period of time.

Another wrong way people store food is partial refrigeration. It is better to allow frozen food to thaw properly before reboiling; if not, the heat may not be able to penetrate and kill the micro organism that may contaminate it. Generally, in Africa, we are good in cooking our food very well. Also, people, especially mothers, should not store poisonous substances like kerosene and others inside mineral bottles or bottles that once contained food products. A child may mistakenly take such liquid thinking it is food.

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